Firefighters were called after lightning struck a house in Wakefield and set it on fire. The family say they had a lucky escape as their son had been in the room which was hit only ten minutes earlier.

A family of four are lucky to be alive after their home was hit by lightning early today. Mohammed Afzal, his wife and youngest son were woken by a loud bang at about 7.15am at their home in Plumpton Street in Wakefield.

Mr Afzal said his older son Zeeshan, 19, had left for work 10 minutes earlier. "It's a good job," said Mr Afzal, "because the lightning hit Zeeshan's bedroom. He could have been killed." Structural engineers say they will make the property safe later today.